Super Projection Calculator — How Much Super Will You Have?
How much super will you have at retirement? Find out.
Forecast retirement balances, compare nominal and inflation-adjusted growth, and estimate what that balance could mean as an annual retirement drawdown.
Superannuation
Your super today
Use the latest balance shown in your super fund or myGov.
Contributions
Projection settings
Toggle between nominal returns and inflation-adjusted real returns.
Before-inflation growth rate of your super fund.
Used to convert nominal values to today's dollars.
Projection mode
Super Projection
Projected balance at age 67
$2,286,728
Estimated drawdown to age 90: $99,423 / year
Inflation-adjusted equivalent: $1,238,557
- Projection years
- 32
- Annual concessional
- $12,000
- Employer contribution
- $12,000
- Voluntary contribution
- $0
- Cap headroom
- $18,000
- Annual concessional contributions sit within the $30,000 cap for 2025-26.
Related tools
How the Super Projection Works
Why Project Your Super Balance?
Most Australians check their super balance once or twice a year, but rarely project what it will look like at retirement. Small changes to contribution rates compound dramatically over 20–40 years — in the worked example below, an extra 3% salary sacrifice starting at age 25 adds roughly $481,000 by 67. This super projection calculator lets you visualise those compounding effects and answer the question "how much super will I have?" by comparing what different return assumptions mean in today's dollars. To model the take-home-pay side of a salary-sacrifice change, use the salary sacrifice super calculator — the super contributions guide covers the caps and tax treatment in detail.
How It Works
- Enter your current balance: Use the latest total shown by your super fund or ATO online services.
- Set contribution rates:Add your employer SG rate and any voluntary salary-sacrifice percentage you're making or considering.
- Choose return assumptions: Compare nominal returns (raw percentage) with real returns (adjusted for inflation) to see the difference in purchasing power.
- Review projected balance and drawdown: The chart shows your balance trajectory to retirement, and the drawdown estimate gives a simple annual income benchmark.
Key Concepts
Concessional Cap
The annual limit on tax-deductible (pre-tax) contributions — $30,000 for 2025-26. Includes employer SG plus your salary sacrifice. The cap may differ for other financial years; the calculator adjusts automatically when you switch.
Compound Growth
Returns earned on your balance generate their own returns the following year. Over decades, this snowball effect is the biggest driver of your final balance.
Real vs Nominal Returns
Nominal returns show raw growth. Real returns subtract inflation, showing what the balance can actually buy in today's dollars — a more useful planning lens.
Drawdown Estimate
Divides your projected balance by the years between retirement and age 90. A simple benchmark for annual retirement income, not a pension strategy.
This is a simplified projection, not advice
The model assumes constant salary, contributions and return rates. Market volatility, tax settings, insurance premiums and legislative changes can all materially change the real outcome.
Assumptions This Projection Uses
Every super projection is only as good as its assumptions. This tool keeps them deliberately simple and visible:
| Assumption | How it's handled |
|---|---|
| Salary | Held constant for every projected year — no wage growth or career breaks. |
| Contributions | Employer rate plus your voluntary percentage of salary, added once a year. The 15% contributions tax is not deducted, so balances are slightly optimistic. |
| Investment returns | Your chosen rate, applied to the opening balance plus that year's contributions. Balanced fund options have historically averaged around 7–8% a year nominal over long periods (per large-fund and Moneysmart long-run figures); conservative options sit lower, growth options higher. |
| Inflation | Real mode converts returns to today's purchasing power using 2.5% a year. |
| Fees, insurance and earnings tax | Not modelled. Subtract typical fees from your return assumption to approximate them. |
| Concessional cap | Employer plus salary-sacrifice contributions are compared with the selected year's cap ($30,000 for 2025-26) so you can spot likely excess contributions. |
| Drawdown estimate | Projected balance divided by the years between your retirement age and age 90. |
Example Projections
Age 25
Starting balance: $15,000
On a $65,000 salary with employer SG only and 7% nominal returns, the projected balance at 67 is roughly $2,182,000. Adding 3% salary sacrifice pushes it to $2,663,000 — a $481,000+ difference from one small change made early.
Age 35
Starting balance: $80,000
On a $95,000 salary with SG only, the projected balance at 67 is around $2,042,000 nominal. Switching to real returns shows roughly $1,117,000in today's dollars — a useful reality check against the headline number.
Age 45
Starting balance: $200,000
With 22 years to retirement, the existing balance does a lot of the heavy lifting. At this stage, maximising concessional contributions (salary sacrifice up to the 2025-26 cap of $30,000) becomes the most impactful lever for closing any gap — compare strategies with the invest vs offset calculator.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does the projection assume each year?
The tool adds annual employer and voluntary contributions to the opening balance, then applies the selected return rate to that combined amount. Salary is held constant in this simplified projection so you can isolate the effect of contribution rates and investment returns.
What is the difference between nominal and real returns?
Nominal returns use the raw expected investment return. Real returns adjust that rate for inflation so the projected balance is shown in today's purchasing-power terms instead of future dollars.
How is the drawdown estimate calculated?
The annual drawdown estimate divides the projected retirement balance by the number of years between your retirement age and age 90. It is a simple planning benchmark, not a pension strategy recommendation.
Does the calculator check the concessional cap?
Yes. Employer contributions plus voluntary concessional contributions are compared with the selected year's concessional cap so you can spot when salary-sacrifice settings would likely exceed it.
How does salary sacrifice affect the super projection?
Salary sacrifice increases your annual contribution, which compounds over decades. Even an extra 2–3% of salary sacrificed into super can add tens of thousands of dollars by retirement due to compound growth, and the contributions are taxed at 15% rather than your marginal rate.
What is a reasonable return assumption?
A balanced super fund has historically returned around 7–8% nominal per year over long periods. After inflation (typically 2.5–3%), that gives a real return of roughly 4.5–5.5%. Conservative funds sit lower, growth funds higher. The tool lets you test different rates so you can see the range of possible outcomes.
How much super will I have when I retire?
It depends on your current age, balance, salary, contribution rate, and investment returns. Enter your details into the superannuation calculator above to see a projected balance at your chosen retirement age. For example, a 30-year-old on $85,000 with $40,000 existing balance and employer SG only projects roughly $2,239,000 nominal (or $1,143,000 in today's dollars) at 67 with 7% returns.
How much super should I have at my age?
The Association of Superannuation Funds of Australia (ASFA) publishes age-based benchmarks through its Retirement Standard and Super Balance Detective tool — indicatively around $65k by age 30, $175k by 40, $345k by 50, and $520k by 60 for a comfortable retirement. ASFA updates these figures periodically, so check superannuation.asn.au for the current numbers. Use this super projection calculator to see where your balance is tracking and how contribution changes could close any gap.
More tools
Explore related calculators
Convert hours, pay, tax, super, and planning questions.
More reading
Related guides
Background reading on tax, super, and salary topics.